Been Thinking

Christmas Eve I came down with a cold. My throat was raw and a tickle in my chest provoked coughing spasms. Five inches of snow had fallen and the roads were sketchy. Even so, I was on a mission. I needed to go to Chase, and preach at a Christmas Eve community outreach.

So, Jannie and I warmed up the GMC truck, put it in four wheel drive, and left with time to spare. The trip usually takes about 25 minutes. Prudence in driving exacted a travel time of 50 minutes. Still, we arrived 30 minutes early.

I had never been in that community hall before. I entered it and it felt familiar. Funny how small town community halls all seem to share much of the same character. The hall was cool, as if the furnace was working to warm it up, but the fire should have been lit twelve hours earlier. The floor was of maple strips, like a school gym, but attractively put together, showing a little more care in the final appearance. I looked around behind the tall dark curtains of the stage area. There was an old out of tune piano, more stools, and a ladder. I like to know my surroundings... :)

The Chase church was putting on the community outreach. I was excited, even with my cold, to be a part of it. I really applaud the church leadership for seizing opportunities to try to reach their town for Christ. They were active in participating with a town celebration in the summer. Here they were, trying to redeem the time with another outreach.

I was hoping that some First Nations friends would come. So, I had a Christmas message which was contextualized to include Native culture. There are probably 400+ First Nations people living close to Chase. So, I prepared, and prayed.

When we started, there were about 40 seats filled. There were still many more seats available, but the cold temperatures and falling snow probably discouraged some visitors. The meeting began and was in God's hands. He had brought people, young and old, and they were obviously motivated to celebrate the Saviors birth.

We followed an Advent liturgy. A beautiful Advent wreath was up front. In turn, each of the candles were lit, with reading and singing in between. It was good to be with God's people that night, listening to voices reaching out with praise and wonder. The children were dressed in their best clothing, and excitement was written on each little face. The blessed senior saints dressed up, too, but they kept their coats on to stay warm. Their faces revealed a more sublime grace than excitement. They had walked with the Lord over many years and learned the wisdom of faith and perseverance. They were like the great foundation stones holding up a building. There was a beauty revealed in their strength and solid faithful place in that church community. I love people like that. It was cold, slippery, and snowing, and yet they came to worship and support a church outreach. Some came with canes, but they came. May God give them grace, mercy, and peace, to fill their remaining time on this earth.

I nearly memorized the 15 minute sermon, and a good thing, too. The lighting was not so great for reading. I like to print some of my sermon notes in different coloured ink. The Scripture in red or dark green, other marker points along the way in orange. In poor light, red and orange are harder to see, and dark green can't be distinguished from 80% gray.

I didn't see any Secwepemc faces in the crowd, but in honour of this being the heart of Secwepemc territory, I went along with the contextualized message. I began by speaking Secwepemctsin, (the Shuswap language). Then I switched to English. One of the candles represents "Light", Jesus came as the Light of the world. For an illustration, I shared how the Native symbolism with the Sweatlodge Ceremony fit well.

The Sweat ceremony usually comes in three parts. It is a combination of sauna and prayer meeting. It is like going to a sauna for a three hour prayer meeting. (The zeal of a Native "sweat" prayer time could inspire many Christians to rethink prayer meetings...) Anyway, the sweatlodge is utterly dark inside. Only the dark red glowing rocks before you can be seen in the inky darkness. When each phase of the sweat is completed (and new red hot rocks needed to be brought in,) the worshipper would leave "the darkness of ignorance behind, and emerge into illumination."

God knows how hearts were ministered to that night. His Word was preached and the truth of the supremacy of Christ was displayed. Somehow, the Holy Spirit ministers to each of us what we stand in need of. The senior saints said it was a blessing, and they are are a good reference point to listen to.

Oh, how I long to see this church reach their community and bear fruit. It is a little church, without a pastor, and struggling. Yet, they do not give up. So, I found myself thinking about next year. I am already thinking about how to make the next Christmas Eve community outreach even more attractive to the community. "Let's see, I know a talented Christian cowboy musician .... food.... advertising..."